Freedom
Fighters of Indain Indipendence - 5
Tiruppur Kumaran ( 4th
October 1904 – 11th January 1932)
Tiruppur Kumaran a freedom
fighter of Tamil Nadu, was born on 4th October 1904 as OKSR
Kumaraswamy Mudaliar. He was born in the
small down named as Chennimalai in Tiruppur District of Tamil Nadu. He was
popularly known as Tiruppur Kumaran.
He involved himself in
the Indian freedom movement in his young age and he
participated in many struggles in the Indian freedom movement in his short life
of 27 years.
When the Independence movement
was gaining momentum in the Country Kumaran also got influenced and inspired by
Gandhi ji’s principles and ideals. He began to participate and played a major
vital role in the Indian freedom movement.
He started "Desa Bandhu
Youth Association" by grouping the youths and young persons from Tamilnadu
to struggle against the British government to get freedom. He conducted many protest marches against the
British government in many places of Tamil Nadu. He followed the procedures and methods of
noncooperation in nonviolent method suggested by Gandhiji in the Indian freedom
movement. Tiruppur Kumaran also
participated in Congress movement from the Tirupur’s contribution.
His family, however, began to be concerned about his growing
commitment to the cause. They would visit him frequently, urging him not to get
involved in the movement as there could be a danger to his life. But the young
Kumaran did not pay any heed.
When Gandhi led a demonstration in Bombay in 1932, the British
decided to lock up the leader. There were riots and protests about this all
over the country. A patriotic march was
organized by Thyagi P S Sundaram in Tirupur.
During that period
carrying of National Flag was banned by the British. However, the protest in
Tiruppur had people carrying the national flag in honour of our flag and as
revolt against the British order.
Tirupur Kumaran was
one of the participants carrying the flag. When the British started lathi
charges against the protestors, Kumaran didn’t leave the premises. The British cops went down hard. They
started thrashing all the protestors, and Kumaran was caught in the beatings. The
young man fell but did not let the flag touch the ground.
Kumaran fell
unconscious, and the fears of his family came true, as life ebbed out of him.
He was later found dead on the street, still clutching the Indian flag,
preserving its dignity even in death.
Tirupur Kumaran was
only 27 when he lost his life. While he may not have played a major part in the
country’s independence, his national pride, patriotic fervor and selfless
commitment garner credit. A martyr, Tirupur Kumaran is remembered in Tamil Nadu
by the epithet ‘Kodi Katha Kumaran’–meaning, The Kumaran who saved the flag.
A memorial statue for Tiruppur Kumaran
was erected in the park which is very near to Tiruppur Railway station. There
is a street by his name and a college in his name in Tiruppur.
The Government of India had
released a commemorative stamp in his name on October 2004 during the 100th
birth anniversary of Tiruppur Kumaran.
We salute this brave
soldier who lost his life for our freedom.
Subramanya
Siva (4th October 1884 – 23rd July 1925)
For some reasons, the southern part of Tamil
Nadu frequently referred to as "Then cheemai", has
produced many freedom fighters who made an indelible mark for themselves in the
history of Tamil Nadu right from Puli Thevar – about whom we have covered in my
1st episode, to Kattabomman
to many others including Subrmanya Siva.
Though much has not been written about
Subramanya Siva, unlike other freedom fighters and patriots of this region,
there is no denying the fact that Siva was a dynamic and hardworking freedom
fighter whose speeches and writings touched the heart of tens of thousands of
people across this region. As a result, the freedom movement gained greater
momentum in this part of Tamil Nadu than other places.
Let us remember, the British did not offer us the freedom on a silver platter, as,
Behind our independence, one can see the toil and sacrifices of scores of
people across India, including many women.
Subramaniya Siva was born on 04th October
1884 in Batlagundu near Dindigul in the erstwhile Madurai district of
Madras presidency in an Iyer family. He
was a daring freedom fighter, writer and a close associate of V. O.
Chidambarm Pillai- I have shared about whom already in my 1st
episode. He was also close to Subramania Bharathi.
He studied at Madurai in his early years till
12 and later studied at Tiruvanathapuram and Coimbatore. In 1899 he married
Meeakshi. When he was Tiruvanthapuram in 1906, for the first time, he listened
to the fiery speeches from people belonging to Arya Samaj and
other organization. These speeches left a deep impression on him and he decided
to imbibe the spirit of patriotism and freedom from the oppressive British
rule among the young people.
Soon he began giving thought-provoking, inspiring speeches
on India's freedom and these drew the attention of the Travancore Samasthanam
which asked him to leave that place. Then Travancore was a princely State and
the British had control over the administration.
Subramanya Siva's speeches were so good and impressive that they influenced
the young minds against the imperialistic British. In the course of his
political involvement, he developed a close relationship with V. O. Chidambarm
Pillai a staunch freedom fighter and a lawyer and Subramanya Bharathi, a Tamil
scholar and a poet.
Both V.O.C and Siva together organized numerous
meetings about freedom struggle and speeches against the British and their
continued exploitation of Indians and Indian land, besides racial
discrimination practiced by them on the Indian soil. Due to this whipping up of
emotions by Siva and VOC, the British Government arrested them several times to
scuttle their efforts.
On one particular occasion in 1904 Siva was
arrested and given 10-year RI (rigorous imprisonment) under the charges of
Sedition.
Under the British rule, undergoing rigorous
punishment was a gruesome one. It would sap one's energy. One must have
robust health to work like a slave in the galley of a ship. While in jail he
suffered a lot as he was asked to do tough jobs far beyond his capability, like
pulling the country oil mill/oil press manually as if he were a bull,
dealing with unprocessed wool, softening of lime-soaked-dried animal
skins, etc. He was at last released from the jail on November 02, 1912.
Though his health was very much
affected while in jail, after his wife's demise in 1915, Siva became a
full time freedom fighter, besides, he also played an active role in the
welfare of the workers and advised them to get their grievances and demands
clarified through strikes.
Because of harsh treatment during his
jail terms, complicated by poor health, he contracted leprosy. In those days
the treatment was not good enough and leprosy was considered a
contagious disease. Hence, the British authorities did not allow
him to use public transport. Undeterred, he went to many places on foot
and spread the message of freedom from the British and
fighting against them till his last breath.
He started a magazine called India
Desantheri in 1919 and in 1920 he participated in a meeting related to
non-cooperation movement in Kolkata under Lajpath Rai. Later his strong
speeches against the government invited trouble and in 1921 and 1922 he was
again sent to prison.
On January 23, 1923, he started an Ashram at
Papparappati in Dharmpuri district and its foundation was laid by great freedom
fighter Chitharanjan Das. As his health condition began to
deteriorate further because of his advanced stage of leprosy, he
could not attend the first meeting of the Indian Communist party in
Kanpur. He eventually died on 23 July 1925 at the young age of 41.
Siva was quite proficient in Tamil, English
and Sanskrit. A great admirer of Vivakananda and Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and his
political guru was Tilak. He wrote innumerable articles related to Indian
freedom and was the author of the journal Jnanabhanu and books Ramanuja
Vijayam and Madhya Vijayam.
Source:
Durgawati Devi Vohra (7th October 1907 – 15th
October 1999)
On 17th December
1928, Lahore was all abuzz with the news of shooting of John Saunders, a
British Police officer by some young men.
The Police was looking for a turbaned young man and his accomplice
though out the city.
Two days later, a well-dressed,
clean shaven, suited booted young man along with his “wife” and Child in toe,
followed by their servant were seen in the Lahore station, which was still
awash with Police. They were none other
than Bhagat Singh and Dugra Devi Vohra, wife of Professor Bhagwati Charan Vohra
another great freedom fighter of India and Shivram Rajguru. The child they were carrying was her child.
Durgawati Devi also known as
Durga Bhabi in the Indian Revolutionary circle was an Indian revolutionary and a freedom fighter. She was
one of the few women revolutionaries who actively participated in armed
revolution against the ruling British Raj. She was born on 7th October 1907
and was married to Bhagwati Charan Vohra who was a member of Hindustan Socialist Republican Association
(HSRA).
An active member of the Naujawan
Bharat Sabha, Devi came into prominence when the Sabha decided to observe the
11th anniversary of Kartar Singh Sarabha’s martyrdom on 16 November 1926
in Lahore.
Kartar Singh is another great son
of India who laid his life fighting for Independence at the age of 17. I shall
share the details of Kartar Singh later.
(Picture of Durgawati Devi in the
later days and with her husband Proof Bhagwati Charan Vohra and their Child who
also had a role in the freedom struggle when Bhagat Singh escaped from Lahore.)
As mentioned above Devi was
instrumental in helping Bhagat Singh and Shivaram Rajguru escape
after the killing of J. P. Saunders from Lahore.
She led the funeral procession
of Jatindra Nath Das from Lahore to Calcutta after his death in a
63-day jail hunger strike. All along the way, huge crowds joined the funeral
procession.
After Bhagat Singh surrendered
himself for the 1929 Assembly bomb throwing incident, Devi attempted to
assassinate Lord Hailey; he escaped, but many of his associates died. She was
caught by the police and imprisoned for three years. She had also sold her
ornaments worth Rs. 3,000
to rescue Bhagat Singh and his comrades under trial.
Devi, along with her husband,
helped Vimal Prasad Jain, an HSRA member, in running a bomb factory named
'Himalayan Toilets' (a smokescreen to hide the agenda of making bombs) In
Delhi.
Unlike other freedom fighters,
after Indian independence, Durga started living as a common citizen in quiet
anonymity and exclusion in Ghaziabad. She later opened a school for poor
children in Lucknow in 1940, before which she visited Chennai in 1939 to
undertake Montessori training from no less than Maria Montessori.
Her school was the first
Montessori school in the entire Northern India which went on to become a Inter
College, is now languishing and running
with the financial help from the Alumni and with teacher strength of only ten.
Ref :
She passed away in Ghaziabad on
15 October 1999 at the age of 92 without any body knowing about this great lady
who has sacrificed so much for the country.
A small reference to her
character was seen in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s 2006 film Rang De
Basanti, enacted by Soha Ali Khan.
Jai Prakash Narayan (11th
October 1902 – 8th October 1979)
Jayaprakash Narayan was an Indian
independence activist and political leader, popularly and fondly referred to as
JP or Lok Nayak (“The People's Hero”),
He was
born on 11 October 1902 in a village in Saran district of Bihar, British India,
into a Hindu Kayastha family as the fourth child of Harsu Dayal Srivastava and
Phul Rani Devi. His father was a junior official in the Canal Department of the
State government.
He
studied at the collegiate school at Patna where he developed a reading habit.
Along with magazines like ‘Saraswati’, ‘Prabha’ and ‘Pratap’, he also read the
‘Bhagwad Gita’. A brilliant student, he excelled in his studies and completed
school in 1918. He won a District merit scholarship to Patna College.
For his
higher studies, he moved to the United States in 1922. He did several odd jobs
as fruit picker, Jam Packer, Mechanic, waiter Salesman etc. to pay for his education there and these
experiences made him aware about the difficulties faced by the working class.
He
initially enrolled at Berkeley and later transferred to The University of Iowa
when fees at Berkeley was doubled. He was again forced to transfer to many
other universities.
Despite
the difficulties he faced in the U.S., he managed to study his favorite
subject, sociology, and received some valuable guidance from Professor Edward
Ross. During this time, he was introduced to Karl Marx’s works which influenced
him greatly.
He became
an avowed Marxist and delved deeply into books by Indian intellectual and
Communist theoretician M. N. Roy. He also read the works of Lenin, Trotsky,
Plekhanov and Rosa Luxemburg.
Jayaprakash
Narayan returned to India in 1929. Impressed by his ideals, Jawaharlal Nehru
invited him to join the Indian National Congress which he accepted. Mahatma
Gandhi was also impressed by the young man and took him under his wings,
becoming his mentor.
He became
very active in the surging Indian independence movement. He participated in the
civil disobedience against British rule and was arrested and imprisoned in
1932.
During
his imprisonment he met Ram Manohar Lohia, Minoo Masani, Achyut Patwardhan,
Ashok Mehta, Yusuf Desai and other national leaders, which strengthened his nationalist
fervor.
After his
release, he played a major role in the founding of the Congress Socialist
Party, a left-wing group within the Congress Party, and was made its General
Secretary.
He
intensified his role in the Indian freedom struggle and was imprisoned by the
British again in 1939 for his opposition to Indian participation in World War
II on the side of Britain. A daring soul, he made good his escape in a dramatic
way.
In 1942,
when Mahatma Gandhi launched the Quit India Movement, JP along with the likes
of Suraj Narayan Singh, Gulab Chand Gupta, and Ramnandan Mishra planned to
start an underground movement for freedom. However, Narayan was recaptured by
the British in 1943.
He was
finally released in 1946. By this time he had grown so passionate about the
freedom struggle that he tried to persuade the Congress leaders to adopt a more
violent approach against the British.
India
eventually gained independence in 1947. Along with several other socialists, he
left the Congress Party in 1948. A few years later he played a major role in
forming the Praja Socialist Party in 1952.
He became
tired of the party politics and decided to dedicate his life to the Bhoodan
Yajna Movement, founded by Vinoba Bhave. However, his interest in politics was
re-ignited in the late 1950s and once again he became active in political
activities.
He gained
much prominence as a politician in the late 1960s. After the nation suffered
high inflation and unemployment among other problems in 1974, the Nav Nirman
Andolan movement of Gujarat asked Jayaprakash to lead a peaceful agitation.
In his
seventies at that time, he led a silent procession at Patna. The procession was
lathi charged but nothing could deter the patriot’s spirit. He addressed a
large crowd at Gandhi Maidan on 5 June 1974 and called for a total revolution.
These events culminated in the popular people's movement known as the Bihar
Movement.
A severe
critic of the undemocratic government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, he
collaborated with V. M. Tarkunde to found the NGOs - the Citizens for Democracy
in 1974 and the People's Union for Civil Liberties in 1976 with the aim of
upholding and defending civil liberties.
Jayaprakash Narayan led the Bihar Movement which was initiated
by students in Bihar in 1974 in protest against the corruption in the
government of Bihar. Also called Total Revolution Movement and JP Movement, it
later turned against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's government at the centre
and became a satyagraha of sorts
In 1965 he was presented with the Ramon Magsaysay Award for
public service.
He was posthumously honored with the Bharat Ratna, India's
highest civilian award, in 1999 in recognition of his social work
Jayaprakash Narayan married Prabhavati Devi in 1920, who evolved
to become a prominent freedom fighter and Gandhian in her own right. Prabhavati
was very independent and moved to Gandhi's ashram when Narayan went to the U.S.
for his higher studies.
Jayaprakash Narayan suffered from kidney failure, diabetes and
heart ailments during his later years and died on 8 October 1979
Source :
Lala Hardayal Singh Mathur (14th
October, 1884 – 4th March, 1939 )
Lala Hardayal was a
scholar, revolutionary and a freedom fighter scholar who was dedicated to the
removal of British influence in India. He was born on 14th October
1884 in Delhi.
He was a polymath, who
turned down his career in Indian Civil Services. influencing and inspiring many
expatriates living in Canada and the US to fight against British imperialism
during the First world war.
Har Dayal graduated
from the Government College, Lahore (University of the Punjab) on a Government
of India scholarship to St. John’s College at Oxford.
Like many revolutionaries
of that period, he was also inspired and influenced by the philosophy of Arya
Samaj and was a close associate of Shyamji Krishna Varman, Madam Cama and
Vinayak Damodar Sarvarkar.
In 1905, he received two scholarships of Oxford University for
his higher studies in Sanskrit: Boden Scholarship and Casberd
Exhibitioner, an award from St John's College, where he was studying.
In 1907, he started to explore anarchist ideas and stated writing his
thoughts in The Indian Sociologist. The writings led to him being put under
surveillance by the police. Later that year, saying "To Hell with
the ICS",
he gave up the prestigious Oxford scholarships and returned to India in 1908 to
live a life of austerity.
But in India too, he started writing harsh articles in the
leading newspapers leading to ban on his writing by the British Government. Lala Lajpat Rai advised him to leave and go
abroad. It was during this period that he came into the friendship of the
anarchist Guy Aldred, who was put on trial for printing The Indian
Sociologist.
He moved to Paris in 1909
and became editor of the Vande Mataram, about which we have seen in length in the write up on
Bhikaiji Cama.
He traveled through
France and Germany, disseminating anti-British propaganda and
lauding Western science and political philosophy as holding the key to a
successful anticolonial struggle.
In 1911, he moved to the United States where he
became involved in industrial unionism. He had also served as secretary of
the San Francisco branch of the Industrial Workers of the World and
later joined the Communist Workers Party of Germany).
A little over a year later, this group was given 6 acres
(24,000 m2) of land and a house in Oakland, where he founded
the Bakunin Institute of California, which he described as
"the first monastery of anarchism”.
The organisation aligned itself with the Regeneración movement
founded by the exiled Mexicans Ricardo and Enrique Flores
Magón.
He had a designated post of a lecturer in Indian philosophy and
Sanskrit at Leland Stanford University. However, he was forced to resign
because of embarrassment about his activities in the anarchist movement.
In
California he soon developed contacts with Punjabi Sikh farmers in Stockton,
California. Punjabis, a great majority of whom were Sikhs, had started
emigrating to the West Coast around the turn of the century. Hardayal tapped
into this sentiment of these energetic Sikhs and other Punjabis and in 1913 he formed the Gadar Party – I have made a mention about this in my write
up on Shaheed Bhagat Singh - to organize
a rebellion against the British government of India.
In March 1914 he was
arrested by U.S. immigration authorities.
Released on bail, he
fled to Switzerland and then to Berlin, where he tried to foment an
anti-British rising in northwestern India. He subsequently lived for a decade in Sweden. He received his Ph.D. degree in
1930 from the School
of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.
He died in Philadelphia on 4 March 1939. In the evening of
his death, he delivered a lecture as usual where he had said: "I am in
peace with all". But a very close friend of Lala Hardayal and the founder
member of Bharat Mata Society (established in 1907), Lala Hanumant Sahai did
not accept the death as natural as he suspected it as poisoning.
In 1987, the India Department of Posts issued a commemorative
stamp in his honor.
